National Geographic

FUNCTIONSPigeon``````Raven``````Gray parrot``````Capuchin monkeyNEURON DENSITYPallium neurons (in millions) per brain gram0 40 80 120``````Brain stem``````Cerebellum``````Subpallium``````Pallium``````Subpallium``````Brain stem``````Neocortex(Pallium)``````Cerebellum``````White-faced capuchin&HEXVFDSXFLQXV``````Common raven&RUYXVFRUD[``````1.6 g``````9.3 g``````2.5 g``````0.2 g``````2.2 g``````Common cuckoo&XFXOXVFDQRUXV Chicken*DOOXVJDOOXVGRPHVWLFXV``````Great blue heron$UGHDKHURGLDV``````Anna’shummingbird&DO\SWHDQQD``````Common pigeon&ROXPEDOLYLD56 %63%43 %48 %53%4 TH6 TH 8 TH 7 TH``````Higher-order thinking; cognition``````Cardiac and respiratory processes``````Cognition and spatial orientation; controlof voluntary movements``````Chickens can’t be rat-ed for innovativenessbecause domesticationalters behavior.Some species learn vocal-izations that can then beused in social interactions.Some species engage incomplex social relation-ships within groups.``````Some birds are even ableto recall episodic experi-ences from the past.``````Some birds engage in playƃJKWLQJRURWKHUIRUPVRIsocial play.The forebrain’s pallium and subpallium regions—responsible for higher-order function—evolvedGLƂHUHQWO\LQELUGVDQGPDPPDOV%LUGVÅ EUDLQVare smaller but more densely packed with neu-rons, the cells responsible for cognition.Intellectual heavyweightsMONICA SERRANO, NGM STAFF; MESA SCHUMACHERSOURCES: ANDREW IWANIUK, UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA; PAVEL NEMEC, CHARLES UNIVERSITY IN PRAGUE; CHET SHERWOOD, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY; LOUIS LEFEBVRE, MCGILL UNIVERSITYVOCAL LEARNING SOCIALIZING REMEMBERING PLAYING